Background
Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch originated as a magical girl/mahou shoujo manga, having its story written by Yokote Michiko and artwork done by Hanamori Pinku. The manga was seralized in Nakayoshi from April 2003 to December 2004 - 32 chapters were published. All 32 chapters were compiled in 7 manga volumes.In addition, Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch got an anime adaption done by We've Inc.. The show aired on TV Aichi and had two seasons. The first season was 52 episodes and aired weekly from April 2003 to March 2004. The the second season, named Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch PURE had 39 episodes that were broadcasted weekly from April 2004 to December 2004. Despite its name, PURE was based off of the second arc of the manga. The TV series might have ended, but Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch seems to still strike the interest of many, for it has been licensed in other countries - notably Italy and Taiwan. Its popularity has generated many soundtracks and singles, three GBA videogames, E-kara karaoke systems, stickers, toys, figures, and much, much more!
Summary
Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch centers around Nanami Lucia, the mermaid princess of the North Pacific Ocean. During her childhood, she saved a human boy from drowning in the sea and consequentially fell in love with him. She also left him her pink pearl, an important item of every mermaid princess, including herself. Seven years later, Lucia comes back to the human world to retrieve her pearl and meet her childhood love yet again. She finds the boy, Doumoto Kaito, relatively quickly - she does not recognize him at first, but even this misunderstanding is cleared up fast. She also learns that Kaito still remembers the mermaid from his childhood. The only problem is, she cannot tell him this without turning into foam.To make matters worse, a group of water creatures begin causing trouble in both the sea and land worlds. The leader of this group is Gaito/Gakuto (latter the manga version) - his goal is to capture the pearls of all seven mermaid princesses and ultimately revive Aqua Regina, goddess of the ocean.
With love issues and a new enemy, how can a girl manage it all? Thankfully, Lucia is not completely doomed, for, with the power of her pink pearl, she can transform into her alter-ego and sing her enemies to death (I am not joking). She also has the support of two fellow mermaid princesses, Hanon, the South Atlantic Ocean princess, and Rina, the North Atlantic Ocean princess. Together, they will triumph over evil with their amazingly catchy songs!!